Reynolds Park at Green Cove Springs

December 12, 2007
We have completed numerous projects, both scheduled and unscheduled. Wink’s Uncle Jessie came for a week and help with many of the projects the week after Thanksgiving. We have been Anlyzing and trying to repair the port engine which has overheated at maximum speed since the beginning. Bo from First Mate will be here again tomorrow to hopefully finish the repairs. Our watermaker has been repaired. Fishing Rod holder mounted on ceiling in Bunk Stateroom. Two additional cameras mounted, one in cockpit and the other in the engine room. Wink also installed a ABC switch so all the Captain needs to do is dial for viewing.
Wink cut an additional hatch for the port alley in the Bunk Stateroom. The plumbing had to be moved and now we have access to an additional 10’ of storage. Ran a cable and had a local antenna installed for local channels. Wilma painted the engine room. Wink replaced the a/c pump for the saloon. Hung two shelves, one in watch cabin and one in saloon.
Bruce Webster made us great binocular holders and we installed them on both starboard and port sides of pilot house. Wilma learned how to make sour dough bread loaves, thanks to Shiela Ingram.

Happenings Around Reynolds Park
On November 18th Andy Allen came in with N37 Sea Dee. He had a friend helping as crew. Joe Pica and his brother were in town for a short visit. Since then, Joe has come back and taken N37 Carolyn Ann and headed for Pensacola. Neil Ingram and his dog Rio was on N37 Silver Queen so we all got together and had a nice dinner on GH47 Fly Bridge John Henry. Steve Smith came in a few days earlier on N37 Avocet. Congrats to Steve and Marilyn who have bought a condo in Gainesville.

November 19 – 23, 2007 - Thanksgiving with The Johnson's.
We picked our friends Chris and Sandra Johnson up at the Orlando Airport. The weather was incredible for the whole week. We cruised up and down the St. John’s River a couple of times and in to Black Creek. We also went into Gainesville and toured Mirage Mfg. Chris and Sandra celebrated their anniversary so we went to Sonny’s BBQ for lunch. We had a great visit and it was wonderful catching up and just enjoying the week. We cooked a ham and had a Thankful Thanksgiving meal.

Chris plays Captain while Wink enjoys the view and great weather from the bow.


The Great Harbour’s started arriving.

The first in was Lois and Carl Lantz with GH37 Puffin, showing off a new coat of paint.
Barb and Randy Semper aboard GH37 Lazy Dolphin, believe it or not, came in 30 minutes later. Ollie is their dog.
Brooke and Dee Williams came in a couple of days later on GH47 East Passage. They came in via the Atlantic.
Bettie and Klaas van Esselstyn came in on N37 Moon Beam. We moved Semper Fi Three over next to Snuggery so that all the dog owners could be near each other. Scoshi is their toy poodle.
Art and Ellie Hommes came in with their boat N37 Mer Min. They will only be at the dock for a week. They are having Christmas in Cocoa with their children.
Ted and Terry Woehr are expected on GH37 Berlie Mae during the next week.
Joan Peterson and Bruce Webster were docked at Fernadina Beach for a week and soon they will be docked at the city marina in St. Augustine for a month. Their boat is GH37 Forever 39.
Dave Trauger’s boat Premium Time was launched last week. It’s a GH37 with yellow trim paint. He plans to be a Reynolds Park for a while so he can get his punch list started.
Tom and Debra Jenike owners of Cardiac-a-Rest have been in and out several times. They eventual plan to take the boat back to Hilton Head.
George and Christina Comrie live aboard full time at Reynolds Park Yacht Center on their N47 Christina Seas. They have a new puppy Boosier.

November 12, 2007 Sarasota Weekend

The weather in Green Cove Springs, FL starting clearing up as soon as our friend Nancy left to go back to North Carolina. We had a great visit, but it was just way too wind to take the boat out.

The morning that Nancy left, a small fishing boat drifted in and hit the dock. Frank that lives in the last boat on the left and another guy captured it and suspected that someone may have fallen overboard so the police were called. There was a lot of excitement on the dock, but fortunately, the fisherman had tied the boat off somewhere due to engine problems and it had just broken free.

Then later in the morning, Wink and Neal Ingram took Jack-of-Hearts on an overnight trip to St. Augustine via Jacksonville Landings. They had a great time. Ken, Ryan and Travis met them in St. Augustine and swapped out the crew and continued with the boat over to Ft. Myers, FL for the boat show.

Wink and Wilma went to Sarasota for the weekend and drove down to the boat show on Saturday. We had a nice time and bought serveral things.

Today, Tuesday, November 13th is a beautiful day with glass calm waters, no wind and amazingly warm. I, Wilma, have totally goofed off all day long. Tomorrow I'll go back to work, cleaning out the car from our trip.... Have a great Thanksgiving.

Visiting with Nancy

This is our friend Nancy Burns. She is visiting us from Charlotte, NC this week. Unfortunately this is the only sunny hour during the visit. Nancy and Wink use to work together at Arkwright Mutual Insurance before the big merger to FM Global in 1999. Nancy retired, but Wink remained with the company until July 2006. Nancy is holding our dog "Sarasota" while Wilma takes the picture. Behind Nancy are two cruise ships that have been docked at Reynolds Park Yacht Center for quiet awhile and it's my understanding that they are FOR SALE. I think their names are the Cape Cod Light and the Cape May Light.

Nancy asked some very good questions about the "John Henry". This is a good time to reminder to all those wonderful fans out there that in the very early blog postings - we have lots of details about John Henry's length and beam and also lots of inside pictures. This is a picture of Wilma standing next to "John Henry" while docked at Green Cove Springs, FL.

Nancy took a great picture of Wilma and Wink in the galley. We were tag teaming on Monday Night (10/29/07) making dinner. Wink's mother's recipe of String Beans and Pork. We also invited Neil Ingram over for dinner as he just returned to Silver Queen.

Here's the recipe for a simple dinner.

String Beans and Pork
1 pkg thin sliced pork chops sliced thin for stirfry
1 small onion chopped fine
¼ to ½ cup sesame oil
1 tsp garlic paste
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp chili paste
2 cans chicken or beef broth
3-4 cups string beans – snapped
Soy to taste

Heat sesame oil until hot, add onion and pork and brown.
Add garlic, ginger and chili paste (or use fresh to you liking)
Add broth and string beans. Add enough water if necessary to make sure beans are covered. Cover with lid and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat to medium temperature and cook for about 1 hour until beans are tender. Add soy to taste and serve over rice. On Tuesday night Nancy treated us to a seafood dinner at The Top of the Reef resturant in Green Cove Spring. It was great, Thanks Nancy...

New Happenings at Green Cove Springs, FL

Wink and Wilma will be staying on John Henry (more or less) until the summer of 2008.
Our future plans include Thanksgiving on the boat with friends. Taking the boat around to Sarasota, FL for Christmas with the family. Then hopefully over to the Bahamas and a good bit of time in the keys and West Florida Coast. Keep checking in and staying in touch. Wilma is going to try harder to update on a weekly basis (TRY) anyway. Love to all......



Wink and Wilma went Shrimping in the St. John's River.





We borrowed Ken Fickett's skiff and had several great days catching shrimp.





Our first day we caught 35 lbs. Altogether we caught and kept 48 lbs of shrimp. We caught even more shrimp and gave it away. Our freezer only holds so much!





We've had boiled shimp, fried shimp, shrimp bisque, shrimp cocktail.... gosh I sound like Bubba in Bubba Gump Shrimp.











Neil and Sheila Ingram, new owners of "Silver Queen" are docked just across from "John Henry".

Today, "Silver Queen" a N37 and "John Henry" a GH47 went for a little cruise north towards Jacksonville, FL for a nice day on the water.

This photo is of "Silver Queen" with a Jacksonville backdrop.

Paul and Sue Graham, owners of GH37 "Odyssey" are here at Green Cove Springs, FL getting ready to make their annual crossing to the Bahamas. I don't have a picture of "Odyssey" at this time.

Jan Westermann and Dennis Taylor took "Mother Ocean" out and about for a test drive recently. "Mother Ocean" is a twin (not identical) to John Henry. She's a GH47, white hull with green trim.


Since this photo was taken, the deck netting has been added and the boat is almost ready to head north next week.











Here's "Carolyn Ann" a new N37 whose owners are Kathy "Punky" and Joe Pica.


Joe was in town a few weekends ago with a friend getting the sea trials accomplished for "Carolyn Ann".


















Wink and Wilma were in Sarasota getting our condo ready for sale. Uncle Jesse was a big help and we really appreciated all that he did and does for us.

Dallas to San Diego to Sacramento to Dallas to Florida (July 16-Aug 26)

Wink planned the Western Loop part of our trip while we were visiting with family and friends in Dallas. Wink and I and the two granddaughters (Amber and Emma) spent 2 months (July 1-Aug 26) on the road and traveled 8500 miles when the car was finally parked at the Boat on August 26, 2007.

It was a fantastic trip for all of us on the road, so I'll only highlight the adventure with our agenda and some photo’s.

Dallas, TX
We were in Dallas for a week visiting with the grandchildren’s parents.
We also visited with Wilma’s brother Charles.

Wink, TX
We drove through to check it out for Wink.

Abilene, TX
(Elegante Hotel) really nice – favorite hotel of the trip

Carlsbad, NM
(Best Western) – saw the bats fly at night
Spent two days enjoying the cavern.























Ancient Petroglyphs in NM














The tallest spot in TX is near El Paso.




El Paso, TX
(Camino Real Hotel) – could see Mexico from our window
Went shopping for Jeans and Western Shirts. I wish I’d gotten a pair of boots and a hat too.









Tombstone, AZ
(Best Western) – Butterfield Stagecoach ride, OK Coral,
Boot Hill – Lots of Fun















Yuma, AZ
(Best Western) – Territorial Prison at Yuma and the
Colorado River – at Mexican Border

San Diego, CA
(Wink’s Brother’s Home) We were there for the week of
Wink’s brother John’s Hawaiian Wedding – Great event and
had lots of fun with family.

















The bride is a member of the local
paddle club which honored them with an
Hawaiian Chant and assisted in making
all of the head dresses and lei's for the wedding.
Wilma learned lots more of Hawaiian Culture.

Wink was born in Honolulu, HI





Lompoc, CA
We had to drive through because Wilma use to live there about 30 years ago.

San Louis Obispo, CA
(Best Western-not great) The weather was cold and hotel was noisy.

Monterey, CA
(Best Western) We went to the Aquarium.
Top Notch and highly recommended



















Sacramento, CA
We were visiting with Wilma’s cousin for 3 days.
We panned for gold in the American River (no luck)
Wilma and her cousin William had a great time catching up.



















From Sacramento, we traveled east through numerous National Parks also.
Kings Canyon National Park, CA
General Grant, third largest tree in America
Wilma was there 30 years ago with her son and wanted to bring her grandchildren.
Sequoia National Park, CA
Lots of impressive large trees.









Death Valley National Park, CA
HOT!













120 degrees in the shade. 280 ft below sea level.




















Las Vegas, NV A drive thru during the day. The girls enjoyed the architecture.














Hoover Dam, both NV and AZ
A spectacular site of the Colorado River. A bridge is being built to bypass the dam.
Terrorism threat is a worry that American must now have to accept.










Williams, AZ – visited the mother road Route 66


(Best Western) This is a neat little town that has tourist shops and is very idealist for the Fifties.
We wish we could have stayed longer.








We went to Bedrock City, AZ
Wilma is a Flintstone nut and she needed some more Tee Shirts.
















Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
Meteor Crater National Park, AZ
Pahrump, AZ
(Best Western)


There were lots of Wind Farms in the West.
















Petrified Forest National Park, AZ
Painted Desert National Park, AZ

Albuquerque, NM
(Best Western)

Ft Sumner, NM
(Billy the Kid Grave and Gift Shop
The gift shop is owned and ran by a great couple and
they have a very nice selection of great products.

Lubbuck, TX
(Best Western)

Plano, TX
We stayed in Plano for a week. Our daughter-in-law made
the decision to move back to Florida so we help her
pack and move to Delray Beach, FL before returning to the boat.

Our travels back from Texas included stopping at Wilma’s sisters
in McGehee, AR, her mother’s in Yazoo City, MS, Wink’s aunt in
Live Oak, FL, two days at our condo in Sarasota, FL, another
night in a Best Western in Boca Raton, FL and then Wink’s counsin
in Stuart, FL and on to Green Cove Springs, FL were the boat
has been waiting for us.

We enjoyed our LAND vacation but are thrilled at being back on board
John Henry. We've discovered that leaving the boat for 2 months is good for
the soul, but bad on the A/C strainers and the boat bottom was full of barnicles.
We'll have to plan a more compresensive caretaker for the boat if we do this again long term. It's taken us almost two weeks to get everything cleaned up, and washed down.

I hope to update the blog again shortly for our new adventures on John Henry.
We've already had a couple of interesting events at Green Cove Springs, FL so .....
Stay Tuned........

Green Cove Springs, FL and Road Trip

We have had a very exciting summer. Our grandchildren, Amber and Emma have been with us for 6 weeks now. We are now in Dallas, TX delivering the children home for a week before taking off on another great adventure to the Far West USA. Working our way back in time, we stopped in McGehee, Arkansas to visit with Wilma's sister, Betty, her husband Tom and their grandson Jax and their new addition Grant (the dog). Pictured below is from left to right.

Amber & Grant, Sara & Jax and Emma.

Before going to McGehee, we stopped in Yazoo City, Mississippi to visit Wilma's parents. The girls loved harvesting the garden with Mamaw and Papaw (their Great Grandparents).

We packed up from Green Cove Springs after getting the boat settled and enjoying the fresh spring pool in Green Cove. Emma was very happy to be heading to see Mom and Dad.
Amber shared her seat with Sarasota, our 9 yr old canine daughter.

Before we left for our road trip, we (the girls) took a day out to the beauty shop and had "do" and manicures and pedicures.

The day out was a must as we had been very busy catching

Sand Perch, seeing dolphins, and catching sail catfish.

Emma even caught a pinfish and gave it to Grandpa Wink who put it on a big pole and caught a bonnethead shark just before sunset one evening. Strange though, the girls didn't want to go swimming after seeing a shark caught.

Grandma and Emma finally got a day with Breakfast in Bed after many weeks of serving Amber and Grandpa breakfast in bed.
We only got this treat because we went on strike from all work..............

June 7-15, 2007 Palm Island Marina

After Tropical Storm Barry, the girls posed for a picture in Sarasota City Park. John Henry

was docked straight across in Marina Jack's. (Remember to double click pictures for enlargements).

From Sarasota, FL we traveled north back to Egmont Key near Tampa. We anchored for a couple of days and went Fishing and Shelling. Egmont Key was the best shelling yet. Amber and Emma collected enough shells to give some for gifts. On Saturday, June 9th, we raised anchor and departed via the Gulf of Mexico and spent the day cruising and fishing all the way down to Pelican Bay, just inside Boca Grande Pass. Wilma caught 4 spanish mackerel on the trip with each one bigger than the last. We asked Amber and Emma to hold the fish for us.

We arrived at Pelican Bay which Emma thinks should be called Dolphin Bay because of how many Dolphins she counted. Amber and Emma spent time with Grandma counting dolphins, having snack and writing in their journals from the fly bridge. A little piece of paradise.

Just as we were turning on the generator for the evening charge the impeller broke. We spent a hot even in the dark while Wink made the repair which only took 3 hours. We had cold sandwiches and bedtime stories with headlights.

The next morning we motored north to Cape Haze, FL to Palm Island Marina and MarineMax to have our boat bottom painted. MarineMax has a 100,000 lb lift. John Henry weighed in

at 61,000 lbs. (including fuel tank at 90% full, water tank at 50% full, and the holding

tank - empty).

The Marina had great weather and no requirement for the crane for 3 days so they left John Henry in the crane for safety. They started the job on Monday and we splashed back in on Thursday morning. They did a very nice job. WE DECIDED TO STAY A COUPLE OF DAYS

AND ENJOY THE POOL. THIS IS PARIDISE.... 20 FT FROM BOAT TO POOL! Amber and Emma are in photo in front of John Henry. They both swim like Mermaids.

Amber is cruising the bottom of the pool.

Emma prefers no goggles - she's a natural.

June 4 - Grandchildren

Before I start, please remember that these pictures are small and that you can double click any picture to make it bigger for better viewing enjoyment. Then just click your back button to return to the blog. There have been several times I've had to click the back button multiple times to get back to the blog.

Also, I'd like to take a moment to say that in the end of the Tropical Storm Barry, there were 3 boats aground and 1 boat sunk at the city park anchorage area. I took a couple of pictures of one boat, but decided not to post at this time.

Amber and Emma in the playground area of City Park which is located right behind Marina Jack's. We walk Sara there everyday when we are at the marina.

This picture is of Amber and Emma with the Ringling Bridge behind them, still in city park.

There is a nice water fountain area where kids can play in the water, unfortuately, we arrived before it opened. We'll try again on another day.

The park has many swings and I think the girls made sure that they all worked.

This is the LaBarge which has palm trees and mermaids on it. This is a tour boat that goes out several times a day from Marina Jack's.